What Do You Expect?

I've had a small epiphany. I'm sure you've already had this one and this post is just a reminder for you. You generally perform at about the level you expect out of yourself.  I've been a lot more productive in this past week and I've only made one change.  I've expected to be.

So much of how we perform is based only on one thing - our expectations for our performance.  Do you recall the Roger Bannister 4-Minute Mile thing?  Nobody thought it could be done.  Once Bannister broke the barrier there was a shift in expectations.  Now, if you can't run a mile in four minutes, you're not even taken seriously as a runner.  In the same way, many of your current limits are totally arbitrary.  No reason you can't raise them!  
Time for me to get back to work.  It's been a productive day, but I can do better.  In fact, I will do better!  I'm expecting a lot more from myself and it feels good!  Subscribe to this blog.  Let's see what's ahead together!

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The God of Provision.

"Abraham called the name of that place The Lord Will Provide, as it is said to this day, “In the mount of the Lord it will be provided.”" ~Genesis 22:14 (NASB)

...which is an interesting passage and very well known and a good illustration of where it's good to dig into the language a little bit. Thinking the word "provide" or about provision limits our understanding. Abraham really said "The LORD will see to it." or (more colloquially) "The LORD will take care of it."

The Latin helps us, too, when we go into why certain words were chosen as the Bible was being translated. Why use the word "provide" instead of another word like "give" or something else? Because provide comes from "pro" (before or beforehand) + "videre" (to see). The LORD sees ahead of time.

The ram was in the bush before Abraham set out in the morning! We don't know when he got his horns caught in the thicket or why. Was the ram running from a coyote? Had the coyote been chased away from another encampment by a local shepherd? Did that shepherd catch the coyote because his breakfast had been burnt and so he got frustrated and went out to pasture early? The answers are both "Yes!" and "who knows but God?" because we see that He saw ahead and saw to it.

We talk about giving blessings. We've got songs celebrating Jehovah Jireh. That's good. The Lord certainly blesses. It goes well beyond giving to you to include arranging all the things that concern you! Even your deliverance!  That challenge you're facing right now? He already saw it. Concerned about how it's going to turn out? Don't be. Relax. He will see to it. In fact, He already has.

Subscribe to this blog.  Let's see what's ahead together!

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How Badly Do You Want It?

...so you have to decide how badly you want it. Do you want "it" enough to change? Your words SAY you've received a vision - direction from God - but when are you going to totally sell out to bringing it into manifestation.

(You believe that ultimately the "answer of the tongue belongs to the Lord" but you also know you haven't done all YOU can do!)

...so how badly do you want God's best for your life? For your family? Do you want it enough to fast? To pray? To push away that plate? To make an extra phone call? To wake up earlier in the morning or go to bed earlier at night? To invest in your education or at least buy (and read) that book? To knock on a few doors? To step out of your fears and walk in faith? To get your emotions under control and stop letting them drive you?

If there isn't something on that list or on your own that you're willing to do differently, you're still just talking. You don't want "it" badly enough yet.  Join me on Facebook and subscribe to this blog a part of your action!  Let's progress together!

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Walking Funny

I was out looking at real estate recently. The agent was walking me to look at condos but she had a funny way of walking. As I followed behind her, I found her extremely difficult to follow because she kind of stopped and started and even swung her legs in a way that it looked like she was about to change directions. To say it was frustrating would be an understatement!  I am a naturally fast walker. I almost ran over her at least twice!  She had said the unit was towards the back of the property but didn't tell me where. I wasn't sure where we were going or I might have gone ahead or walked in front.

Imagine trying to follow or even walk with someone when you aren't sure what direction they're going even moment to moment? I'm still mad thinking about it. I never called her back if I'm honest about it. I really don't want to deal with that stress.  Maybe I'm making too much of it, but you weren't there!

Anyway, here's the point to my true story: do the people around you - those relying upon you for direction - know what direction you're going?  Do you look like you're going one way and then swing back the other at the last second? Do people even know your intended destination?  If not, they might be feeling pretty frustrated right now. I'm sure they love you, so they aren't mad. They might even want to help you get there.  But they have a hard time when you're walking funny instead of walking straight.

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Breathe

Pray for me. No, really. Pray for me!!

Do you ever have those days or weeks where you feel stressed out of your mind?! There has been so much coming at me this week (in a good way) and that's where I am a little bit. I'm blogging this right now as a way to stop and force myself to breathe, de-stress and meditate on God's promises over my life? Too religious for some people, I'm sure.

Still...the reality is I have those times just like everyone else. Maybe more than some. Therefore, I am going to do four things before I get back to work:

1. Take several deep, very deep breaths.
2. Force myself to smile.
3. Remind myself of all the promises the Lord has made me regarding my future.
4. Take a step in that direction.

I posted on my Facebook page and I've blogged about it before how sometimes the challenges that we have in front of us look not only challenging, but overwhelming! "How can I do THAT!? I don't even know where to start!" I'm going to do the only thing any of us can do in those moments: breathe, smile, trust God and move forward.

I've already prayed asking the Lord for wisdom, guidance and favor. As a Believer, I have to trust that God hears and answers my prayers...that they aren't just exercises in speaking words into the air. Therefore, the only thing left is to add the only two ingredients I can inject into the equation: faith and action.

I hope you're doing the same!

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Changing Direction

Indiana Jones taking the walk of faith...

There is no great lesson packed into this blog entry today. It's just me talking...writing. I'm not even sure what direction the next sentence will go. All I know is I am busting my butt working on taking my life in a new direction after years in hard money real estate lending...which I still plan to do lightly...and this is the toughest set of challenges I've ever faced in my life.

...and I feel like I'm doing it in front of the world. I get a lot of support from family, friends and even church members, but I know about half of them are holding their breath trying to see what happens with me. I've got a few "haters" too. Everybody trying to do anything significant has haters. The only way to make sure you don't have haters is to disappear from society. That's not an option.

So...I'm accepting speaking engagements and speaking. E-mail me! I'm rounding out my event calendar for the Fall. They've been going well so far. People like me. On the inside I feel like my heart is going to pop out of my chest because I know I'm learning on the job. I hope it doesn't show too much but I keep reminding myself "Every Master was once a disaster." as T. Harv Eker says.

I'm finishing my first book. It's done. I am preparing it for editing and publication. This ought to be interesting! I know I've got at least five more inside of me. I sent out early drafts of a few chapters a couple of days ago. That was terrifying. You want to know fear and judgment? Pour your heart into learning a new skill, perform it in PUBLIC and then ask people for their honest opinions!

I've also got to figure out how to make all of this make money. But I'm not interested in making money. I'm interested in earning MONEY!!!! I'm comforted by the fact that I'm moving in a direction that allows me to leverage my time, talent and energy much better. That's a good start. I know you can't get rich trading time for money. I've done that for years. I've earned a lot of money in my life, but there's always a limit because if (WHEN!) you run low on energy, time or health, you cut off your earning potential. I'm going to the right direction now.

I'm also doing the things I know I've been created to do. This makes me not only the Founder but the "First Student" of Live BIG! Die Empty. and I want it that way. I will build my career by writing, speaking and teaching on things I've experienced myself and put into practice. There's more integrity in doing things that way.

So, that's all. I can't think of anything else I want to share right now. Pray for me. If you want to support me, pre-order my book. There is some really, really good stuff in it. If there isn't, I'm sure people will let me know!

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